Just curious...when writing a require/include statement, what do you prefer as better practice?
require('filename.php');
or
require 'filename.php';
Thanks!
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1 Answer
Always the latter - the same applies to echo, print and other language constructs, too. Never add additional parenthesis after language constructs!
The reason is simple: Using parenthesis makes you believe that require is a function - which it is not! For example:
if (require('file.php') == false) {
// do stuff
}
You - and probably even most of the senior PHP developers - would say that this compares the return value of the require. But it does not! PHP interprets this as:
if (require (('file.php') == false)) {
// do stuff
}
which is:
if (require '') {
// do stuff
}
If you use parenthesis with language constructs you could as well write:
require(((((((((((((((((((('file.php'))))))))))))))))))))
Or would you ever write:
array(('hi'));
That's just as much the same nonsense.
3 Comments
Matthew Flaschen
"Never use parenthesis with language constructs". So you never use
array or exit with a parameter? This is really an operator precedence issue, and a fairly contrived one at that. There is no suggestion in the question.of checking a non-existent return value. And if you do write require('file.php') == false, you get an immediate fatal error. So there's no possibility of subtle bugs.
NikiC
@Metthew: With
array the parenthesis are part of the construct. With require they are not. You cannot omit them.
Woppi
Thanks nikic! For almost 2 years now, I'm using require('filename.php'), until I bump into a code with a require 'filename.php' construction...and got curious... Thanks for your explanation! :D